Posts from March, 2010

Eastern Wyoming College and the Goshen County Economic Development Corporation have teamed up to implement a business retention and expansion program in Goshen County. This program is co-chaired by EWC President Dr. Tom Armstrong and GCED board member Cactus Covello, under the direction of Lisa Johnson, GCED Director.

The purpose of this program is to retain existing businesses, help businesses with expansion plans, provide resources and support for local businesses and identify ways to improve the business climate.

“I had the pleasure of being one of the founding members of the GCEDC and have seen many exciting things happen within this group, but one of the most important tasks that this group performs is that of Business Expansion and Retention. After the recent turn of events in our life, my wife and I are even more committed to seeing that the good people of Goshen County have every chance to work and prosper in their businesses here. Helping our locals to maintain or expand their business ventures in Goshen County will hopefully help and preserve the way of life we all hold so dear,” shared GCEDC board member Cactus Covello.

A task force of approximately — members has been formed. This group will be contacting a sample of area businesses to participate in a survey. The survey is a Synchronist tool provided by the Wyoming Business Council. The questions on the survey are designed to gather predictive data such as a business’s growth plan, community problems or the need or desire for assistance. Data collected on the survey is confidential and will only be reported in a holistic and statistical manner.

The goal of the program is to improve the business climate in Goshen County so that both new and existing businesses can prosper. Once the surveys are completed and compiled, the task force will then work to identity problems. GCED will address any short-term problems and will work with the task force to develop strategies and address long-term problems.

“Eastern Wyoming College provides excellent training for business and workforce needs. Having a strong college makes a strong statement to existing and emerging businesses as well as those looking to relocate here; they are assured the community is future focused and on track. The college serves as a cultural hub that supports a diverse set of programming and lifelong learning activities.

EWC will continue to support efforts in Torrington and Goshen County that advance learning, economic stability, and growth. I value our people and our partnerships,” added EWC President Dr Armstrong.

Task force members will continue to contact businesses to participate in this survey. Business owners who have not been contacted and would like to participate should contact the GCED office at 307.532.5162.

“We are so pleased with the collaboration with Eastern Wyoming College and the business professionals and community representatives that volunteered to serve on the business task force,” said Johnson. “When you have this many people involved, we will make great strides to ensure that Goshen County continues to be a great place to do business.”

Eastern Wyoming College women’s basketball coach has announced the signing of several star players to fill the roster this upcoming season.

Hannah Earley, 5’5″ guard from Campbell County High School in Gillette, Wyoming has signed a letter of intent to play for the Lancers. She is known as a hard-nosed defensive player and comes from one of the premier programs in the state of Wyoming.

Lacy Leaf, 5’10” wing player from Cheyenne-Eagle Butte, South Dakota will also join the Lancers. She is a versatile player who led her team to a 17-5 record and the Championship of the Lakota Nation Invitational Tournament where she was names MVP.

Bailey Limpy, 5’8″ guard from Lame Deer High School, Lame Deer, Montana has also signed to play for Coach Andersen. She averaged 13 points, 13 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals and served as 2 time team captain for the Lame Deer Morning Stars. She helped to lead the Lady Morning Stars to their first championship game in school history.

Shauri Lyon, 5’11” post player from Manti High School, Manti, Utah will also join the Lancer roster. She is a strong and athletic player who will add strength and rebounding in the paint. She was recognized as the MVP this past season.

Shickerra Marsh, 6’0″ post from Manvel High School in Pearland, Texas is also joining the Lancers. She is a strong inside player who can post up well and is an excellent rebounder. She averaged 10 points and 11 rebounds this past season.

Jessica Santistevan, 5’6″ guard from Pinnacle High School in Denver, Colorado has also signed. She is a very strong three point shooter who can handle the ball and has a great court sense and feel for the game. She averaged 14 points per game and led her team in assists.

Jubilee Sutherland, 5’6″ guard from Glennallen, Alaska will also play for the Lancers. She is a great three point shooter as well as a strong ball handler. She averaged 22 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 steals her senior year.

“I am excited to add these student athletes to our program. They are all great team players and have individual talents that will move our program to new heights. Coming off a 15 win season, combining these players with our returning players makes me very excited for next season,” shared Coach Andersen.

Eastern Wyoming College will soon welcome nationally recognized diversity speaker Dr. Mario Rivas to the main campus in Torrington, Wyoming. Dr. Rivas will be on campus on April 5-6, 2010.

Dr. Rivas has taught at the community college, undergraduate, and graduate levels of higher education. Currently, he is a full-time professor of Psychology at Merritt College in Oakland, California, teaching a full-range of Psychology courses. As part of his assignment at Merritt College, he is responsible for working with local high schools to increase the enrollment of Latino/a college students.

Upon his visit to EWC, Dr. Rivas will present educational sessions to administrators, faculty, staff, and students on the following topics:

“Increasing Academic Success for At Risk Hispanic Students,”

“Teaching Strategies for Retention” and

“Developing Student Leadership.”

A free public presentation will also be held on Monday evening, April 5, 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm in the college cafeteria. The topic for this session will be” Increasing Academic Success for At-Risk and Hispanic College Students.”

Participants will be provided with strategies that will allow them to

develop and utilize culturally appropriate and effective practices,

assist students in student success,

assist students to become task involved, achieve a strong sense of their own identity and capacity to develop and actualize their personal, educational, and career goals,

and assist students in promoting greater student responsibility for learning.

Dr. Tom Armstrong, President, Eastern Wyoming College shared the following about the upcoming presentation. “We are fortunate that Dr. Rivas accepted our invitation to share his expertise. Eastern Wyoming College enjoys quality student support and looks forward to expanding opportunities for all students, providing them a level of comfort and confidence as they commit to strengthening themselves and increasing their options. Please, join us as we continue to improve all aspects of learning and services. We truly believe that A Little College is Good for You.”

Dr. Rivas will also be providing a presentation at Torrington High School on the morning of April 6. He will be addressing students, faculty, staff and administrators.

Dr. Rivas is a first-generation-to-college Latino who was raised in challenging circumstances. After experiencing a degree of success while serving in the United State Air Force, he completed a B.A. in Psychology, a Master’s degree in Counseling, and a Ph.D. at the University of Minnesota in Counseling and Student Personnel Psychology. Dr. Rivas’ dissertation was entitled “An Exploratory Study of a Group Intervention with Underprepared Minority Students in University.”

Following completion of his doctorate, he assumed the position of Director of the Undergraduate Advising Center at San Francisco State University, where he also developed the Learning Assistance Center. Dr. Rivas also served as Associate Dean of Undergraduate Studies at San Francisco State University, and Vice President of Student Services at Berkeley City College. Dr. Rivas left SFSU to become Vice-President of Student Services at Berkeley City College, a position he held for seven years.

Dr. Rivas has also served as co-chair of the Multicultural Concerns Commission of the National Academic Advising Association (NACADA) and has authored and co-authored several chapters and articles focused on improving the achievement and learning success of students of color. Dr. Rivas served as Assistant Director of the Martin Luther King Undergraduate Leadership Advising Office, which served as the primary advising department for students of color.

On Wednesday, March 24, from 12:00-12:50pm in Tebbet 131, Eastern Wyoming College will host the panel presentation, “Presentations/Perceptions of the Body and Self,” featuring Meg Van Baalen-Wood and Nita Kehoe. This presentation explores how our perceptions of self, normalcy, and stigma are shaped by history as well as social and scientific constructs and limitations. Starting with intersections in the presenters’ work with film, art, medicine and politics, they will explore a few of the many factors that influence beliefs and behaviors and then examine how these perceptions perpetuate our expectations, behavior, and social norms.

Meg Van Baalen-Wood teaches professional and technical communication, both online and in the traditional classroom at UW. As coordinator of the Professional Writing Internship program, Wood also works closely with undergraduate professional writing minors and local/state employers. Wood frames her pedagogy and research around the notions of interdisciplinary and intersections among creative and technical discourses. She is also a creative writer, poet and technical communications consultant.

Nita Kehoe is a professor of art at Central Wyoming College. She has an MFA in sculpture and teaches a wide array of studio art courses. She is also a practicing artist who conceptually focuses on human anatomy.

A light lunch will be provided during the event. This event is free and open to the public. The presentation is sponsored by reVisioning the (w)hole, EWC Honors Program, UW Outreach School, and UW Foundation. For questions, please contact Annie Hilton, Honors Program Director, at 307.532.8286.

Wyoming Conference award winners were: 1st team all conference to Jessica Brown and 3rd team all conference to Danielle Brown.

Academic All Wyoming Conference players were Danielle Brown, Jessica Brown, Sarah Smith and Jayde Schelling. To qualify as an Academic All Conference player, the athlete must have a grade point average of 3.20.

Academic All Region IX players were Danielle Brown, Sarah Smith and Jayde Schelling. To qualify as an Academic All Region IX player, the athlete must have a grade point average of 3.25 for a minimum of 2 semesters.

The Eastern Wyoming College Athletic department has announced that on Monday, March 1, 2010, all admissions and 50/50 proceeds raised at the Lancer Men’s game against Western Nebraska Community College will go to the Travis Sims family. This will also be the last home game for the Lancers. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 in the Verl Petsch Jr Gymnasium.